The Cincinnati Bengals have a serious problem rushing the passer, which often leads to one big question from fans — why not use Joseph Ossai more often?
Ossai, after all, is an incredibly gifted pass-rusher who can post some high-efficiency numbers when able to do so.
The problem is his actually being able to do so.
Defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo put it best this week, as captured by CLNS Media’s Mike Petraglia: “We’ve got to work with Joe and help get him in a position where he can help us win.”
Other teams have figured out how to attack when Ossai is on the field. He’s a liability in the running game, which showed up again on at least one major Commanders play last Monday. He’s got a 47.0 PFF grade on the season already for a reason.
These struggles, at least partially, explained why he only played 20 percent of the snaps over 14 games last season. He’s up to 41 percent right now, but there are only so many must-pass scenarios for opposing offenses.
Ossai is a little like Zach Carter in the middle of the line as another former third-rounder who just isn’t developing into an every-down or even major contributor.
That’s especially problematic on the edge, where former first-rounder Myles Murphy is on injured reserve and Sam Hubbard appears to be fading fast.
